Huge hearth ‘turns sky black’ as smoke plume seen for miles forces evacuation
A massive fire has ripped through an industrial estate in Staffordshire with thick plumes visible from miles around.
Soon after 7am on Thursday morning, Staffordshire Fire and Rescue Service reported it had been called to a blaze in Cannock. Incredible images from all around the area have been shared on social media, showing the striking impact the fire has had on the midlands landscape.
No information as to what sparked the fire has yet been released by the emergency services.
Firefighters have issued an emergency evacuation order for Cannock and the surrounding area. Staffordshire Fire and Rescue Service said in a post uploaded to X, formerly Twitter: “We have a very large scale incident close to the orbital islands in Cannock. We have 10 fire engines in attendance supported by specialist equipment and officers. Some roads closures are in place.”
It added in a second tweet: “Update on Large incident in Cannock, fire Fighters are asking all residents to close windows and doors due to smoke and all local businesses to evacuate.”
It is understood dozens of firefighters are on the scene, rushing to control the blaze with 10 fire engines on the scene.
“Looks bad, hope no one is hurt,” one person said. Images now circulating online show a massive column of smoke reaching into the sky, widening with height. For many, the plume rises above trees or hills, their taker unable to seemingly even come close to seeing the source of the blaze.
According to BirminghamLive, the blaze ripped through buildings near the A460 Orbital earlier this morning (May 9).
One person on X said the blaze was located behind a Sainsbury’s. “Massive plumes of smoke can be seen for miles around”.
One clip, taken from the M6, shows the pillar of smoke towering over the town, shedding light on the scale of the blaze.
Delays have been reported along roads in the Cannock area. Westmidlands Railway said that the blaze has not currently affected its service.
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